Chowder House Ahoy

as i've written before, given the tens of thousands of hungry people who come to the lincoln center area, it astounds me that there aren't more really good restaurants there. yes, jean georges is great, but it's a bit pricey for most people; ditto a voce, per se, masa and picholine. but the clever forces behind the brand-new ed's chowder house devised a formula that allows them to serve first-class seafood dishes at affordable prices. as a result, they've hit the ground running. restaurateur jeffrey chodorow wisely tapped ed brown to be "chef-collaborator" with executive chef jamie knott. brown has had a most auspicious career, particularly when it comes to seafood. he spent 14 years as executive chef at the great sea grill, and currently also owns and operates the exalted eighty one in the excelsior hotel opposite the museum of natural history. brown is also the author of the only seafood cookbook you'll ever need, the modern seafood cook, and he updated the vast seafood section of the recently revised joy of cooking. as for knott, he most recently served as executive chef at the hectic and cherished china grill, whose management team, headed by chodorow, joined brown to form ed's chowder house. the decades of combined restaurant experience really pays off at the new venture.

the spacious restaurant is in the empire hotel one flight up from the street and, of course, the empire is directly across the street from lincoln center's new york state theater. designer jeffrey beers wanted to create the feeling of a long island seafood restaurant, and he succeeded admirably. photographs by tom eckerle of the seaside and fishermen line the mahogany-and-white paneled walls, strategically placed mirrors augment the complicated space and comfortable cream banquettes are everywhere. service is precise and well-timed; our server, andy, was friendly and filled with excellent ordering advice. delicious house cocktails include elderflower royale, a heady, sweet and gentle blend of imperia vodka, elderflower liqueur and lemon stirred with buzzy prosecco. the drink is served, appropriately, in a champagne flute. a hemingway daiquiri features bacardi limon, clear maraschino liqueur and grapefruit and lemon juices to tone down all the sweetness. now that oyster season is in full swing, don't miss the wonderful assortment available here. the selection changes daily, but we loved the tomahawk oysters, with their light and smooth banana and cucumber accents, and not a trace of metal. even better were "mistic" oysters, with their meaty texture and pure, slightly saline oceanic flavor. of course, if you're in a restaurant with "chowder" in its name, you need to try the chowder. for just $12, you can sample three: a creamy corn chowder gets a needed kick from a light drizzle of cayenne; new england-style clam chowder isn't very "clammy," and it needed a little salt to give it the proper oomph; blue crab chowder was the best of the three, prepared manhattan-style with diced tomatoes and plenty of crabby flavor. but even better than those three is a roomy cast-iron cauldron filled with "ed's loaded shellfish chowder," a thick and creamy affair featuring plenty of minced clams, sea scallops, shrimp and chunks of lobster, all for just $15. this would make the best lunch imaginable, and it almost makes a whole dinner! a trio of smoked chatham cod cakes are parked on and dribbled with roasted diced tomato and mild chili jam. if you don't believe cod cakes can be as good as crab cakes, you need to try these. the entrées are divided into two categories: "composed" and "simple." for the purposes of reviewing, we stuck to the composed section. peppered tuna steak frites featured a nice slab of tuna steak with a generous dollop of herbed butter melting all over it. a cone of perfectly seasoned and damnably irresistible fries is along for the ride. the tuna, which should be ordered rare, literally melts in your mouth. i don't think i've ever resisted ordering a lobster roll when i spy it on a menu, and the roll here, which andy steered me toward, is as good as it gets. a buttery and toasted shaved hot dog roll hugs a highly generous lobster chunk stuffing, with a delicate amount of lemony mayonnaise. if your eyes don't roll back in your head with pleasure, you need a vacation. desserts are delightfully decadent. four warm chocolate fried doughnut balls are lightly sugared and pumped full of eggy custard, and offered with both a double-chocolate dipping sauce and a vanilla custard sauce. burnt vanilla custard is really a giant bowl-five inches in diameter-of crème brûlée. the custard is at room temperature, as it always should be, and i've never been served a larger portion. as the shadows lengthen and the opera, philharmonic, ballet and south pacific are soon to get underway, the restaurant gets busier and busier. but just wait till regular lincoln center denizens find out about this place! actually, don't wait-go to ed's chowder house as soon as you can. tom@hugeflavors.com

ed's chowder house, in the empire hotel 44 w. 63rd st. at broadway 212-956-1288 entrees: $17 to $28, with a few meat dishes priced above $30